The City of Massillon is broke.
As a result of its deplorable financial condition, the city could not undertake a program of street repaving this year.
"Lack of funding is keeping the city from undertaking a paving program this year, but select streets have been chosen for patchwork repairs" (The Independent, August 16, 2011).
"Select Streets"
Including the street where our Extraordinary Mayor for 125 Days, King Francis the Selected, resides.
We were told it is merely coincidence that the five streets scheduled to be repaired in the city this year are in the mayor's neighborhood.
We were told that this is mere coincidence, because in Massillon, our city engineer makes these decisions not based on the whims of his boss, the mayor, but on a rating system that rates the worst streets in the city.
According to City Engineer Keith Dylewski, these "select streets" "scored high on a ratings system used by his department" (The Independent, August 16, 2011).
"scored high on a ratings system used by his department"
The crack Massillon Review research team was suspicious of this "ratings system."
The crack Massillon Review research team believed the only "ratings system" employed was that the mayor wanted his street fixed, and by god, it was going to be fixed.
They didn't believe the mayor's street was among the "worst in the city," and asked to see Dylewski's rating system.
Of course, there wasn't one.
Go figure.
Business as usual for the Extraordinary One and his lackeys.
"Correcting an earlier report, Dylewski said the paving project was not scored on a ratings system, but its condition still warrants the proposed repairs" (The Independent, August 29, 2011).
Actually, the truth is the City of Massillon doesn't even have a ratings system for streets.
Engineer Dylewski was referring to a street study performed by the Ohio Department of Transportation which did not even rate the mayor's street.
"However, since concrete streets such as Cyprus Drive were not included in the ratings, it was not one of the factors used by Dylewski and his staff to determine the project priority, he (Dylewski) said" (The Independent, August 29, 2011).
No Kidding.
City Engineer Keith Dylewski lied about a ratings system.
So that the controversy surrounding his "selection" of streets to be fixed would not seem so questionable.
His "selection" is questionable.
To the objective observer, it stinks.
There was no ratings system.
Dylewski lied.
And was caught.
Perhaps the next mayor will hire folks who won't lie.
